Shrouded Sky

Chapter 264 - The Yellow Springs Mound

The Ageless Chamber, a name carrying the immortal meaning of eternal life, was actually the famed “Yellow Spring Mound” recorded in the Celestial Source Tome.

The Black Emperor was startled and said, “Kid, you didn’t read it wrong, did you?”

“I have seen the Flame Dragon Grave, I have personally been to the place where the dragon’s blood was spilled. I would not mistake the Yellow Spring Mound, which is on the same level as them.” At present, Ye Fan’s understanding of source techniques had reached a very high level.

The vast hall was utterly silent, extremely still, with no signs of life.

“There’s no danger. If this were the Yellow Spring Mound, a huge disaster would have already happened by now.” The big black dog was suspicious.

The Yellow Spring Mound was absolutely a deadly and extremely dangerous place. In ancient times, sages had gone to great lengths to carve such a source mountain into a palace, truly a grand undertaking.

Ye Fan and the Black Emperor returned to the first level of the grand hall. They did not wish to act rashly and needed to observe carefully.

“Dao runes, I’ve finally sensed them. There are extremely powerful dao runes here, drawing on some mysterious force for their own use, giving this place the effect of immortality.” The big black dog suddenly spoke.

“Where does that power come from?” Ye Fan asked.

The Black Emperor closed his eyes, and only after a long time did he suddenly open them wide and say, “Right in the center of this hall!”

Ye Fan controlled the cauldron to move forward, arriving at the central spot of the ancient hall. The ground was covered with source stones carved with all kinds of runes, birds, fish, insects, beasts, and more.

Ye Fan stepped out of the cauldron, lifted one of the stone slabs on the ground, revealing a pitch-black deep well.

“As expected… the ancient sages truly had great skill, turning a deadly land into their own use!”

“Where does this broken well lead to?”

“Naturally, it leads to the Yellow Springs, drawing divine power for the Ageless Chamber’s use.”

From below came a faint sound of flowing water, along with waves of ghostly energy rising upward.

“What’s so special about the Yellow Spring Mound?” the big black dog asked.

“According to the records in the book, it is water from the Nine Nether Yellow Springs, sealed within the source veins, and within it are born things beyond imagination,” Ye Fan answered.

Suddenly, the yin energy below surged up like knives, and dots of light rippled out, no longer pitch black.

Ye Fan quickly returned to the cauldron and peered into the deep well.

The big black dog also stretched its neck and widened its copper bell–sized eyes, staring intently.

Splash…

The sound of water was like the ringing of metal and stone, heavy and resonant, giving off a hazy glow.

“It’s truly the Yellow Springs!” the big black dog exclaimed.

Below, there was a waterway sealed within a crystalline transparent source vein. A yellow great river surged through like a yellow dragon roaring.

“Legend says when the Nine Nether Yellow Springs retreated from the human world, some of its water was left behind underground. Could this be true?” The big black dog was shocked.

Ye Fan’s expression was solemn. He stared at the Yellow Springs below without speaking. He did not care much about the water itself, after all, it was dead matter, what he cared about was what was born within it.

Spirit energy like a dragon rushed up along the ancient well, making one feel as if bathed in spring breeze.

“Damn, that’s the aura of Godsource!” The big black dog was shocked. “Kid, think of a way, there’s Godsource down there! Quickly get it up here!”

“You think I don’t want to? But do we have that kind of ability? If we break open the source vein, both of us will die here,” Ye Fan said in a deep voice.

At that moment, within the surging Yellow Springs, a glimmer of light appeared. Faintly, one could see a long, rectangular source stone drifting along with the current.

“That looks like a stone coffin!” The big black dog was astonished.

“That’s Godsource, with something sealed inside!” Ye Fan’s expression grew heavy.

That long rectangular piece of source stone lay at the bottom of the Yellow Springs, hard to see clearly, then was carried away into the depths of the source vein. The darkness below returned.

“Divine source, there’s a piece of Godsource beneath this Ageless Chamber!” The big black dog was hopping mad with excitement.

Of course, their exchange was not in actual words, but entirely through divine sense.

Ye Fan put the stone slab back in place, sealing the well again, and murmured, “The ancient sages truly were extraordinary, they sealed the Yellow Spring Mound.”

He also frowned. From this, he could infer that a single piece of Godsource was far less valuable than millions of catties of regular source. Otherwise, that ancient Sacred Physique corpse would have been refined long ago instead of left behind.

“The Dao Palace realm truly is a heavenly chasm impossible to cross…”

Ye Fan and the big black dog entered four more great halls. In the center of each one was a well that reached down to the source vein sealing the Yellow Springs.

Each well had complex dao runes carved around it, transforming the divine power from the deadly place into the power of longevity. This greatly interested the big black dog, but even after studying for a long time, he could not understand it.

“It’s really ironic, underground is the Yellow Springs, aboveground is the Ageless Chamber…” Ye Fan sighed.

It was originally a place of great deadly evil, but was turned by the ancient sages’ mysterious dao runes into a treasure land that could prolong life.

Life and death were so close, separated only by a single well.

By the time they had entered six great halls and found six ancient wells, Ye Fan finally felt at ease. The Yellow Spring Mound had been completely sealed. Even after so many ages, the dao runes had not failed.

Otherwise, if such a deadly place’s seal were broken even a little, both he and the big black dog would have died with no chance of survival.

In the seventh great hall, Ye Fan and the big black dog vaguely saw something within the Yellow Springs, it truly was a stone coffin, connected to a piece of Godsource.

“How could there be such a thing?”

“A stone coffin in the Yellow Springs…” Ye Fan was also shocked. What kind of being from the ancient era could it be?

He only knew that some Godsources sealed ancient beings, but this was the first time he had seen one sealing a stone coffin.

“I think this is a bit suspicious. It’s probably not some ancient being!” The big black dog’s eyes flashed, as if recalling something.

When they entered the eighth ancient hall, Ye Fan felt a little disappointed, there were no stone carvings about cultivation.

“Did the ancient sages leave nothing behind?” He was puzzled.

“This place does hold a secret technique, but you cannot obtain it, even I can only stare at it.”

“What did you discover?” Ye Fan asked.

“Dao runes, of course. Ancient cultivators, when comprehending the Grand Dao of heaven and earth, would carve it in the form of dao runes. They rarely recorded it in words.” The big black dog spoke.

Ye Fan frowned. He could not yet study dao runes in depth, and even the big black dog, with such profound knowledge, was helpless. But he was not discouraged, for he had already gained a great Daoist scripture from that corpse.

Only the last great hall remained, where he was about to meet Pang Bo. Ye Fan was deeply worried that something might have happened to him.

Ye Fan and the Black Emperor stayed within the cauldron, slowly flying toward the ninth ancient hall. Along the way, they noticed the spiritual qi growing denser, and faint light coming through.

They were highly alert, for a great battle might be about to erupt. A divine sense battle was the most dangerous, the slightest mistake meant eternal doom.

When they pushed open the heavy stone doors and entered the hall, they were greeted by dazzling brightness, sweeping away all darkness.

“This…”

It was nothing like a grand hall, it was vast, larger than the previous eight halls combined.

Here, the vegetation was lush, colorful flowers bloomed everywhere, ancient trees spread their branches, draped with vines.

Streams trickled, pebble paths stretched, ancient towers stood, pines were tall and upright.

Rather than a hall, it was like a natural garden.

“This is a world of its own!” The big black dog was astonished.

An ancient sage could open a particle world, so creating such a small space within a hall was nothing unusual.

This was a bright and vibrant world. To suddenly step from a pitch-dark hall into such lush greenery was truly startling, the contrast was immense.

Ye Fan scanned the surroundings, searching for Pang Bo’s figure, his powerful divine sense ready to strike like a golden sword at any moment.

The pebble path led into a grove of ancient trees, vines everywhere, drooping from the branches to the ground, covered in small white flowers.

“Pang Bo!”

Ye Fan’s eyes shone as he looked toward the woods.

Ahead, in the forest, was an altar partly hidden by trees. Upon it sat a tall figure cross-legged, with many fallen leaves on his body, as if he had not moved in a long time.

He was unusually burly, much more robust than an ordinary person, bare-chested, his bronze-colored skin glowing with health, and thick black hair hanging down to his waist.

It was indeed Pang Bo. They had been separated less than a year after coming to this world, and several years had passed before this reunion.

The cross-legged Pang Bo suddenly opened his eyes, like two bolts of lightning, extremely sharp.

Seeing such a fierce gaze, Ye Fan’s heart sank. This was definitely not Pang Bo, it gave him a sense of extreme danger.

The man ahead might have Pang Bo’s body, but he was like a wild beast, exuding a terrifying aura.

“Attack!” Ye Fan shouted.

The Black Emperor roared like a savage dragon, shaking this space so much it trembled.

Hundreds of great banners were thrown out, surrounding the woods and altar, blocking any escape.

The banners fluttered, covering the sky and the altar, sealing them in.

“Hmph!”

A heavy cold snort rang out. The powerful figure on the altar stared at Ye Fan with eyes like sharp knives and said, “Are you here to return the Dao Scripture?”

“What have you done to Pang Bo?!” Ye Fan shouted.

“I am Pang Bo. Aren’t I fine now?” The man on the altar remained seated, unmoving, but his aura grew even more terrifying.

“Kid, are you sure this is an old ghost about to run out of lifespan? Why do I feel like I’m facing a true dragon?” The Black Emperor urgently sent a mental message.

At this moment, the bare-chested Pang Bo did indeed resemble a desolate ancient beast, exuding immense pressure.

“He’s bluffing. He won’t live long. Let’s go together and take him down!” Ye Fan struck first. At his brow, the small golden lake gave birth to a golden sword that slashed out in an instant.

A divine light shot from Pang Bo’s brow as well, colliding with Ye Fan’s golden sword. A dazzling, terrifying brilliance erupted, like two iron hammers smashing together.

“Such powerful divine sense. In just a few years apart, you’ve achieved this level.” This Pang Bo’s eyes shone brightly. “I’ve long yearned for your body. Today, since you’ve delivered yourself, I’ll take it too!”

“Roar…!”

The big black dog roared, like a wild dragon shaking mountains and rivers. It was hard to imagine how much power was in its body, making the whole space tremble violently.

A crack opened on its forehead, revealing a third vertical eye. A terrifying black light shot out, slashing toward the man on the altar!